Pisgah - Big Ivy and Mill River

April 18
Rudy wrapped up van repair stuff (ended up not needing to do much, but replaced some brake sensors) and I got in a decent run of ten miles of sidewalk and gravel path, more than intended, but I enjoyed it. After a little cleanup, cheesecake, and farewells, we departed Boone and headed a couple hours south to Pisgah National Forest Big Ivy area northeast of Asheville. Kind of a damp day, and we didn't do anything too ambitious. Rudy finally opened the coconut - seemed past its prime and we weren't brave enough to sample. I took a nice stroll and looked up some flowers despite the spotty service.

Violas

Fern and geranium

Trillium

Bellwort

Ate shells and cheese with mushrooms and played Hand and Foot - one win each.

April 19
Light rain in the morning, but no significant precipitating, and I was motivated to run! I went up, up, up the gravel road a bit over an hour, took an old road bed of more rolling hills, which was a bit grassy with a few mucky spots.  Most of the descending was on a short, way too steep stretch of singletrack (actually my slowest mile of the run!), then back on the gravel road. Rudy biked more of the singletrack in the area - we actually met as he was pushing his bike up the steep stretch I descended. After three hours and 15 miles on my feet, I enjoyed lots of eating and wandering around looking at flowers, and the sun actually came out!

Foam Flower

Butterflies!

Another Bellwort

Jack in the Pulpit!!!

Rudy finished up a bike ride, lunched, and got back out again! I eventually got on the bike too, just an out and back on the gravel road, taking stops for photos on the way that I didn't make time for during the run, so barely faster than the run. I had fun though.

Duthman's Breeches, I think

This was pretty cool in the fog too

The fault makes this look fake

Cool cliff and magnolias

With the lack of sun, I took a pretty tepid solar shower, but at least the weather was nice. Rudy returned from ride two and a clean up in the creek just in time for food. My favorite gruel of split peas and sweet potatoes, followed by Hand and Foot - one win each.

April 20
Another cool and drizzly morning with scattered thunderstorms forecast for the day. We headed toward Asheville, some along the scenic Blue Ridge Parkway. Stopped in town for groceries and a little wifi and caffiene gorging at Starbucks, then continued further down Blue Ridge Parkway and into more of the Pisgah National Forest southwest of Asheville. Rudy's first camping option was to be near Bent Creek Experimental Forest, but there was a closed gate at the access road. So we went further south and ended up in the Mills River area of Pisgah National Forest, where camping is allowed at designated sites only. Found one decent drive in spot that was next to an already occupied site with dogs that barked, but didn't seem problematic. A few bouts of light rain during the afternoon, nothing major though, and I got out for a stroll along the Funneltop Mountain trail. Rudy biked some of the surrounding singletrack, just checking things out, and reported most areas were wet, but mostly rocky and sandy base meant the mud wasn't bad at all - and he saw a bear! I just saw some birds.

nice view

magnolias

Rudy was back past regular dinner time, and I was contemplating if I should go look for him! No need though. We made quick and delicious bean burritos and played one game each of Hand and Foot and 3-13, Leslie's night for both games!

April 21
A cool but pleasant morning - the forecast pushed the chance of thunderstorms into the afternoon, which was lucky for Rudy. When he thought rain would start before noon, he had planned to bike early, but slept in instead! Both of us got out for a bike ride. I checked out some of the 'intermediate' trail nearby - still way too advanced for me, lots of walking up, and even down, the steeper rooty sections. Still, a nice day, cool scenery, and only one minor crash.

An awesome overlook, worth a little detour

I swear the trail is steeper than it looks

Being Friday, by early afternoon, we acquired some new neighbors, with horses, a dog, two little kids, and a chainsaw - really no issues to complain about though! Rudy enjoyed his ride and actually came across some guys he rode with a few years ago when he was in the area for work. The afternoon did bring thunderstorms, reading, and puzzling. Dinner was pasta, then Hand and Foot - one win each.

April 22
A beautiful day, we each got out for longer respective bike and run. Black Mountain for Rudy - one of the more famed technical downhill trails in the area. Pink Beds and Barnet Branch trails for me, plus gravel road to get to and from. I managed to get in over half, mostly easy singletrack for the 31+ mile outing with nothing to complain about - one little tumble to get my arms dirty.

On Barnet Branch, the only picture I got myself to take on the run

Refueled with plenty of lentils and quinoa and relaxed with more Hand and Foot - one win each.

April 23
Lots of rain overnight and through the whole day. I got out to hike a couple hours anyhow in the morning - luckily light rain for most, though the precipitation picked up near the end so I got to finish up nicely soggy. We ran the van a bit to help dry things out, and add a little warmth as the temperature steadily dropped down into the 40s! So lots of van time, watched Straight Outta Compton, lots of tea, puzzling and reading. I was feeling confident enough after the prior day's run to sign up for Kettle Morraine 100 mile in early June, probably too soon, but yeah... We continued the rainy day tradition of soaked black beans and rice, and played Hand and Foot - two Leslie wins!

Knoxville, TN to Boone, NC

April 11
Sunny! The air was warm enough I even enjoyed a little yoga pre-breakfast. Just a little listening to birds and watching fish swim around in the lake (bass, I think), and Rudy finding and husking a deserted coconut (didn't open it up yet), before departing Lake Santeetlah for Knoxville. We drove Highway 129, which is excessively winding. Lots of motorcycles and photographers on scenic turns - like in running races!

Scenic

Destination was Ijams Urban Wilderness, Mead Quarry trailhead. A good variety of trails, though a little confusing to navigate at times with many intersections - I particularly enjoyed how spring like the area looked!

Mead Lake

So green!

An old cemetery along Tharp Trace

Pretty Plants

A run/hike for me - tired legs to start and end, but had a few miles in the middle that felt nice. Rudy said he felt similar for his longer ride. Dinner was just snacking in the park, letting the air cool off before showering (got into the 80s). Rudy didn't find any good camping options close to town and we resorted to the second night of our trip at a Walmart parking lot. Played only one game of Hand and Foot - Leslie win!

April 12
Some rain overnight, didn't seem too wet though. We went to Baker Creek Preserve, still part of Ijams, with less facilities and people than the Quarry. The trails here are more flowy and downhill, a little tacky and certainly not too much rain last nigh! A shorter run and ride for me was fun and felt good. Rudy biked a few hours and claimed to still felt like a turd. Amazing weather again though, so hard to really complain. After cleaning up we headed east a couple hours to camp in Nantahala National Forest, between Asheville, NC and Greeneville, TN, in a bit of a valley, so no service - hooray! Closed out the evening with bean burritos and Hand and Foot - two Rudy dominations.

April 13
Cool and clear, and late with the sun getting in, but so nice when it showed up! We had a little fun watching a snail before we hiked up the Fork Ridge trail.

Snail fun

A very steep, 1,700' climb in two miles, brought us to the Appalachian Trail. We jogged/hiked 'north' (actually going east) a couple miles along the North Carolina/Tennessee border, looped around 'Big Rock' then headed back.

An easier portion of the AT

View from the top of Big Rock

AT around Big Rock

When we hit Fork Ridge, Rudy made his descent while I went on for a couple more miles 'south' on the AT to get a little more running. Challenging, but fun.

Our pretty little camp creek

Another nearby creek - manmade fishing or swimming hole?

We played around in the nearby creek a bit and had lots of hanging out 'recovering', including a pre-dinner game of Rummy 5000 - Rudy win. Made pasta, then played Hand and Foot - thought I had a chance, but Rudy crushed me, then 3-13 - Leslie dominated!

April 14
Another nice, relaxed morning. We continued east, stopping by the Beech Mountain Ski area for the Emerald Outback trails. This was a bit technical for me - very rooty and short but steep climbs, but good to get some movement, legs were sore from the steep Fork Ridge Trail.

Elk River Valley Overlook

Just a couple hours of bike fun, then we headed to Boone to visit a college friend of mine, Travis, and his wife Lauren. We hung out in the lovely afternoon sun, chatting a few hours, then took a nice (though hilly) stroll through the Appalachian State University campus, downtown and to Vidalia to eat 'upscale Southern'. We sampled pimento cheese with sorghum hoe cakes and bready onion rings, and had entrees of chicken and waffles and catfish - all delicious, but I definitely overate! Everyone was full, and happy to have a little walk back to the house after, which included a stop at a cookie shop where Travis did get a couple cookies and Rudy had some ice cream. Just a chill evening after that.

April 15
A nice, relaxed Saturday morning before the four of us drove about an hour south to the Wilson Creek area, popular for fishing and mountain biking. I opted to do some running while the rest of the group mixed up gravel roads and steeper downhill trails for a few hours of biking. I ended up mostly running gravel too, I checked out some of the relatively new Mountains to Sea Trail and some other hiking trails, but it was more technical than I was up for that day, having my heart set on more running than hiking.

Pretty rock and waterfall

Mountain to Sea Trail

Despite the easier pace, it was not an awesome run for me (I blame all the fried food), a few afternoon sprinkles actually woke me up and felt good. The bikers had a good time though, and definitely a pretty area, so all good. Travis had started a pork shoulder (aka Boston Butt) in the smoker early in the morning, so we got to enjoy that al fresco once we returned to Boone, along with homemade barbecue sauce, cornbread, and salads - once again, we had some fantastic hosts! Rudy made a cheesecake too! But couldn't enjoy that until the next day, so Travis picked up some cookies from another cookie shop in town - I guess college towns need lots of options for sweets.

April 16
Lauren had some office work to take care of and Travis a few errands to run (Rudy tagged along on that), so I tried another longish run to the nearby trails at Rocky Knob. This is a small (~7 miles of trail) but nice, and challenging system of newer mountain bike trails - friendly to those on foot too. Over half my run was getting to and from the trails, but I felt good and had fun, even with the town running. The guys also headed out for an afternoon bike ride. There was some showers later in the day, so we ate indoors, scrumptious smoked pork tacos! Then more visiting while dinner settled enough to finally dig into some cheesecake - turned out dense and creamy, one of Rudy's best efforts I'd say!

April 17
Back to regular life for Lauren and Travis. Rudy needed to do some van repairs and had ordered parts last week to arrive in the afternoon. Unfortunately, not all the parts made it, but an auto parts store was able to fill in the gaps the following day. I took an excessively easy day - just some nice yoga on the deck, reading, wasting time on Facebook, and making pizza dough. My pizzas turned out a little tougher than usual, almost cracker-like crust, but still tasted good - did a Greek veggie-style with olives, capers, garlic, and spinach, along with a smoked pork and sauerkraut. More chill visiting and cheesecake to close out our final evening in Boone.

West North Carolina

April 4
I run a couple miles into North Carolina and the Jackrabbit Mountain trails in Nantahala National Forest. There are less technical trails, that seem to be purpose built for casual mountain biking, saw quite a few kids! and a few walkers out too. Rudy brought the van while I ran a few trail miles, followed by bike rides for us both. The system was lots of fun and well signed, and it was a gorgeous day.

View from the High Point Trail of Chatuge Lake

Nice and helpful signage

Later in the afternoon, we took a little nature hike on the same trails - awesome little informational signs.

Cool signs - though a lot of plants were still dormant

We ended up staying at the trailhead, had barley and red sauce for dinner and played cards. Hand and Foot - Rudy win, 3-13 - Leslie win.

April 5
Thunderstorms were the weather for the day. Started up a bit earlier than forecast, but I still managed to get out for an early run, getting some rain during hour two, but I escaped the heavier stuff. The rest of the day was lots of hanging out in the van - not really a better destination nearby. A good day to soak soup beans and play cards. Two Hand and Foot and one Gin Rummy - Rudy's winning streak continues!

April 6
Cool and drizzly, supposed to be another wet day. I got in a quick stroll, then we drove to Great Smokey Mountains National Park. Temperatures in the 30s! Wet snowflakes sighted! We spent a good amount on time in the visitor center, learning quite a few roads were closed within the park, and opted to check out the Deep Creek Trails - good for waterfalls.

Juney Whenk Falls

Bridge at Juney Whenk Falls

Cool Bridge

Cherokee Rose, I think

Tom Branch Falls

Indian Creek Falls

We did some hiking and were treated to a few glimpses of sun. Rudy even motivated to run! I was content with the slightly drier hiking miles and stretched, puzzled, and watched the rain from the comfort of the van. We eventually made our way to camp at a boat ramp and cleaned up leftovers for dinner. Hand and Foot - miraculous Leslie win !!! 3-13 - Rudy win.

April 7
Cold and breezy, and a little blocked from the sun, so a slow morning getting going. We finally got warmed up and headed to Tsali trails on Fontana Lake. Another decent system, with an apparently successful program of alternating horse and bike users on different days. I got greedy and ran three hours while Rudy biked half the trails open to bikers. Sadly, he needed to make a seatpost repair - at least he got the funner trails in.

Fontana Lake

From the Left Trail Overlook

Houseboats/Boathouses?

We tried to camp in a pull out but North Carolina I think Fish and Wildlife? guys kicked us out, directing us to a nearby campground (not even the USFS one at the bike trails initially) and said there was no dispersed camping around. Rudy found us obvious and legitimate dispersed camping ~5 miles away (~1/4 mile down the road from the private campground we were told to go to!) Seems surprising they wouldn't know about that! We were right along picturesque Panther Creek.

Lovely Panther Creek

Ate shells and cheese and played Hand and Foot - two wins for Rudy.

April 8
Cold and cloudy. We went back to Tsali to get in the other trails. First a shorter run for me. Rudy doubled up on bike rides. The day warmed up quickly once the sun came out and I was interested in getting in a ride too. The mountain biking was good, quite a few downed trees, but nice tread, very few puddles despite the recent rain, and nifty views.

From the Mouse Branch Trail Overlook

We headed back to Panther Creek, ate bean burritos, and got in some Hand and Foot - one win each.

April 9
Cool and clear, so sunshine earlier and a little warmer for one more day at Tsali. Rudy got in the rest of the trails he missed while I got in a five hour run covering 24.5 miles, guessing 1 mile of walking in there - it was fantastic and such a gorgeous day. Sunday and busy, but not crowded.

I was told this is not a poisonous snake, I won't be getting too close

Old Chimney on the Left Trail

Each of us managed to get in some chatting with regional locals. Only sad part of the day was the camp chair we used to claim our camp site was stolen, but at least the site was still unoccupied! It was the older, more decrepit of the two chairs we brought along, but it was also the one with the cup holder. Pasta for dinner, then Hand and Foot - one win each.

April 10
An even nicer morning. A lovely little stroll for me before we headed toward Fontana Dam. We stopped at a relatively fancy shelter along the Appalachian Trail - running water! Then continued to bike on trails near Fontana Village. These were more hikey in my opinion, with a few sharp climbs, and some technical stuff. Only about ten miles of trail (some of it old road), not really a 'destination' but cool to check out.

Another view of Fontana Lake

Four miles of pedaling uphill for a not-terrible view of Fontana Dam

 

We found camping at Lake Santeetlah - pretty, and a few people there, glad we got in on Monday!

Full moon rising

Looks refreshing

Ate lentils and rice, and played Hand and Foot - two Rudy wins.